7.06.2010

What An American 6th Grader Should Know

The Detroit Free Press posted a lengthy quiz about US History in last Sunday's newspaper. In keeping with the Independence Day theme, I decided to share some of their facts with you this week.

Today's facts come from what the Detroit Public Schools expect their 6th graders to know. How many facts did YOU know?

1. Thomas Jefferson helped lead the colonists to revolution by writing the Declaration of Independence (we learned that yesterday!).

2. The role of a constitution in democracy is to guide the government and list guaranteed rights of citizens.

3. In settling conflict, the principal listens to all students' point of view. The principal is protecting the students' constitutional right of Freedom of Speech.

4. People may help make or change laws by expressing their opinions to elected officials, voting, and circulating petitions (among other things).

5. One of the ways that a person may become a US citizen is to be born in the US or its territories.

6. US citizens have the right to vote, to hold elected office, to practice one's own religion, and to have a fair trial (among other things).

7. US citizens have the duty to obey laws, defend the nation, and pay taxes (among other things).

8. The colonists wanted to separate from Britain because they believed that all men are created equal, all men have some rights given to them by God, and all men have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

9. The framers of the Constitution wanted a representative government to limit its control.

10. The judicial branch of the US government protects the rights of citizens by creating laws.